Prior to the World Cup, Mina, Philippe Coutinho and Paulinho were the candidates taking up the available non-EU spots for the Spanish champions but things have since shaped differently with the latter sealing his return to Guangzhou Evergrande on a season-long loan deal.

Meanwhile, Ernesto Valverde’s side have gone forward to acquire Brazilian duo Arthur and Malcom from Gremio and Bordeaux respectively and this has put Mina’s position under genuine threat, considering they have also recruited Clement Lenglet from Sevilla to bolster the heart of the backline.

Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho has shown a keen emphasis on pursuing a central defender before next month’s transfer deadline but so far, the club have not been able to finalise a deal with any of their summer targets.

Of late, United are understood to have approached to sign Harry Maguire from Leicester City after his strong World Cup showing, but their efforts could supposedly go in vain with the Foxes said to have no ambition of offloading their prized asset.

As such, Mina has now surprisingly propped up the United radar and it will be interesting to see how this transfer saga proceeds, given the Colombian has barely adjusted to European football since making his January switch from Palmeiras.

Mina managed to exhibit strong qualities whilst intercepting play during the recent World Cup and this was combined with his impressive aerial ability in the opposition box as he scored three-headed goals.

Despite this, Mina was particularly average in terms of his ball playing potential and this is something which may put him at a disadvantage when compared to Maguire, who has been fluent with the same for club and country.